Colorado Springs is considering a proposal to make it illegal to sit or lie down in downtown Colorado Springs. Making the basic and necessary act of sitting illegal in downtown areas is inhumane, ineffective, costly and a violation of human rights. All people have to sit–no one can constantly be on the move–but with laws against sitting, continuously walking becomes the only legal thing to do. People who do not have the money to purchase things and spend time inside private businesses and people who do not have private homes in which to rest, have a particular need to sit and rest in public spaces.

Laws against sitting in downtown areas have spread across the United States in recent years, even as lawsuits and legislation have been challenging these laws. The Colorado Right to Rest Act, which was heard in the legislature this last session and was one of three such bills introduced in three states, declared the act of sitting in public space a right that all people must have. The Right to Rest Act will be back in the legislature in 2016 with the goal of protecting acts of rest and survival in public.

Bans on sitting in downtown areas are driven by the desire to move people without money or housing–the very people who most need to rest in public space—out of central business areas and away from those with resources. Furthermore, as can be seen in cities like Denver, which has a sit/lie ordinance, these bans are utterly ineffective even in achieving this nefarious goal of moving people out of central business areas. Instead, these laws cost cities money in increased policing, court and jail costs. On average, a city spends approximately $87 per day to incarcerate a person. In Larimer County Colorado there were over 3000 bookings of people who are homeless which has entailed over 8 million in public costs. Colorado Springs currently spends large sums of money policing and incarcerating people for necessary life-sustaining acts such as sleeping, panhandling, and urinating without access to bathrooms. This was brought to attention in October 2014 when the city began placing area restrictions for the downtown area on “repeat offenders” of these “crimes” – all 12 individuals facing the area restriction were homeless. If a sit/lie ban is passed in Colorado Springs the city will spend even more money policing and incarcerating people for non-harmful, life-sustaining acts including the most basic act of sitting.

Sit/Lie bans follow in a mean-spirited history of segregation. These bans on sitting in certain downtown areas are eerily similar to Jim Crow laws which made it illegal for people of color to sit at the same counters or buses with white people. These laws were seen to be wrong and were overturned. We must do the same with laws against sitting in downtown areas and allow all people to sit in public together.

These sweeps force people out of their ‘homes’ along the river; they end in loss of needed belongings; and they are totally ineffective. In Fort Collins, officials have recognized the ineffectiveness of these approaches and are considering amending their camping ban and anti-car sleeping law to reduce the tickets, “move alongs,” and sweeps because, as Police Services Deputy Chief Jerry Schiager said, he’s not sure that enforcement “was really that helpful” last year. It is time for Denver to stop sweeping people along.

In June of 2014, Denver’s City Council Government and Finance Committee allocated 1.8 million dollars to increase downtown policing. The new top activities to be criminalized were, according to Police Chief Robert White, panhandling, smoking weed, and public urination. Though the increased policing was said not to be intended to negatively affect people experiencing homelessness in Denver, it inevitably criminalized their basic human needs. One year later, the increase in police and subsequent ticketing has not improved the condition of people without housing, tourists, and downtown residents.

The criminalization of urinating in public has sadly overlooked the real problem: access to public restrooms. Public restrooms are currently locked and inaccessible. Although 2.13 million dollars were spent revitalizing parks, no public restrooms were built during that time and existing ones were not unlocked. A move to unlock public restrooms will not only save the city money in enforcement but also will diminish the underlying problem of public urination. More importantly, opening existing restrooms to the public will recognize the inherent human dignity of all people, which includes people who are homeless. In the current state, Denver residents are afforded no such thing.

Denver Homeless Out Loud finds it appalling and unconstitutional that the city of Denver has been unable to provide restrooms for its people and has instead criminalized a bodily act that a person cannot control. In order to speak out against this, Denver Homeless Out Loud is hosting a Funeral for Human Dignity in front of the locked public restroom on the corner of Welton and Park Street. The event, complete with liturgy, music, and formal funeral procession, will take place Monday July 13th, 2015 at 5:30 PM. All are welcome and encouraged to wear black. Denver Homeless Out Loud believes all people should have access to a restroom. No one should have to urinate in public because of an inaccessible bathroom. It is with great hope that the city will reconsider its choices in order to better reflect the needs of the community it serves. Perhaps next summer, rather than demanding human dignity, we will be celebrating it.

]]>http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/07/09/funeral-for-human-dignity-monday-june-13/feed/0denverhomelessoutloudDisplaying funeral FINAL A.jpgJuly 18! The Struggle For Space: Homelessness and the Politics of Dys-Appearance in American Citieshttp://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/06/30/july-18-the-struggle-for-space-homelessness-and-the-politics-of-dys-appearance-in-american-cities/
http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/06/30/july-18-the-struggle-for-space-homelessness-and-the-politics-of-dys-appearance-in-american-cities/#commentsTue, 30 Jun 2015 15:36:14 +0000http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/?p=23560]]>The StruggleForSpace: Homelessness and the Politics of Dys-Appearance in American Cities

“The StruggleForSpace” event will explore the intersections of public and private space issues through art, music, education and live models of tiny homes.

As cities have experienced ‘white flight’, gentrification, destruction of low income housing, and ‘new urbanism’, city leaders and residents have had to redefine and relearn what ‘public’ and ‘private’ space means and who holds claim those spaces. This has clearly affected people experiencing homelessness in substantive legal and personal ways. Just this July cities across Colorado are are taking a range of actions: Colorado Springs is preparing to propose a ban on sitting/lying down in the downtown area; Denver is preparing to do “sweeps” along the rivers throwing away people’s belongings and moving people out; Fort Collins, on the other hand, has seen the ineffectiveness of these approaches and is considering amending their camping ban and anti-car sleeping law to reduce the tickets and “move alongs” because, as Police Services Deputy Chief Jerry Schiager said, he’s not sure that enforcement “was really that helpful” last year. All of this comes only three months after the Colorado State Legislature first considered the Right to Rest Act which would have given people rights to necessary acts of rest in public space. At the same time, in Denver, Boulder, Walsenburg, and all across Colorado, a growing number of individuals and organizations seeking affordable and sustainable housing have built Tiny Homes that in most cities are still without a legal existence.

Experts of city planning, political science, and life in public space will shed light on the past, present, and future hopes for the private and public spaces we occupy.

We hope to spark a transformative conversation around the issues of space in Denver – to explore alternative means of creating private spacesfor all those living without, and public spaces where people can be human.

Join us!!

1-4pm, Construction of “Conestoga Hut.” Conestoga Huts are super simple micro-housing units, designed by Community Supported Shelters in Eugene, OR, that are cheap and can be built in a day. Eddie Maestas Garden (former “Triangle Park”) at intersection of Park Ave/Lawrence/Broadway

4-5pm, Tiny Home Open House, along 24th and Curtis

5pm-8pm, The StruggleforSpace Event, at Platte Forum (2400 Curtis St)

Snacks and drinks will be provided for your consumption

Featuring…

-Art by Reach Studio artists (for sale)

-Music by the incredible Laura Goldhamer

-Presentations by Chad Kautzer – professor of philosophy, Billie Bramhall – long time city planner, Ibrahim Mubarak – founder of Right to Dream too all the way from Portland OR, and experienced experts on living in public space.

-Plus…one of the tiny homes we recently completed will be hanging out on 16th St Mall (16th and Arapohoe) the whole week before the event (July 12-17) – Drop by and check it out!

]]>http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/06/30/july-18-the-struggle-for-space-homelessness-and-the-politics-of-dys-appearance-in-american-cities/feed/0denverhomelessoutloudtiny home struggle for space Colorado Right to Rest Act voted down — We continue the fight until all have the right to rest…!http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/05/04/colorado-right-to-rest-act-voted-down-we-continue-the-fight-until-all-have-the-right-to-rest/
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Rally Before April 27th R2R Hearing — representatives from 17 states and 38 organizations fighting criminalization of homelessness in their states rallied in support of the Colorado R2R!

Because this bill did not pass the people of Colorado will continue to be awakened in sleep and moved about the city with no place to legally rest; the people of Colorado will continue to be ticketed and later thrown in jail for covering up with a blanket to stay warm; the people of Colorado will continue to hear taps on their window from officers telling them they can’t sleep in their own car. And the list goes on of all the dehumanizing, destructive, costly, and ineffective forces that will continue to be used to criminalize existing in public space.

With that said it should be clear why the State, Veteran, and Military Affairs committee vote against the Right to Rest is not the end of anything. This is only the beginning. We are continuing this fight for our rights to survive as long as they continue to squash those rights. We will be building the movement and coming back next year even stronger…! This year we had this bill in Colorado, California, and Oregon – next year it may be in even more states! We press on until we can all rest…

On April 27, 2015, the Colorado State House, Military and Veteran Affairs Committee of the State Legislature will be hearing HB 15-1264, known as the “Right to Rest Act.” This will be the second part of the hearing that began on April 15th, 2015. There will be further testimony on the bill, and then final votes from the committee.

This hearing is happening during the first National Convening on the Criminalization of Homelessness which is happening here in Denver April 26-28. Representatives from over 30 cities and over 20 states will be convening in Denver to join national join together our local struggles to end the criminalization of homelessness across the United States. These National Convening participants will be coming together to the Colorado Right to Rest Act Hearing and speaking about our nationwide work to decriminalize homelessness. Among these will be representatives from California and Oregon who have run the same Right to Rest Act together with us here in Colorado as a part of Western Regional Advocacy Project.

On April 15, 2015, Representatives Salazar and Melton introduced legislation to end the alarming trend of Colorado cities passing laws that criminalize the basic human and civil rights of people without housing who must live in public spaces. Testimony demonstrated the need for the Right to Rest Act to protect the basic human rights of all people to exist in public space- to move freely, rest, have privacy of one’s belongings, and eat in public space as well as protect their right to occupy a legally parked motor vehicle. Opposing testimony listed out services in Denver, such as shelters and day centers, without explaining why the existence of these services means that people should not have the right to exist in public space.Ultimately, even if there were enough “services” we still need to protect the essential human right of all people to exist in public. This bill is important because it regains the human rights that we should all equally share, regardless of how many services there are.

This bill will “allow people the right to rest without harassment from police and without ordinances that violate civil and constitutional rights…you better believe homeless people are being discriminated against. So many ordinances are being passed against homelessness that violate people’s rights, and this has become a statewide concern.” -Right to Rest Act Sponsor, Representative Salazar.

Denver and other cities in Colorado rank among the highest cost cities in the country for housing. There are not enough shelter beds or housing for low income people in many Colorado cities, leaving people to wander with few places to go.The recently released audit of Denver Road Home also highlights “the potential risks associated with Denver’s Unauthorized Camping Ordinance.” And states that “it is disconcerting to see that Denver’s homeless shelter situation has not significantly improved three years after the Ordinance was adopted.” Enacting the Right to Rest Act in Colorado will allow our state to take the lead in ending the counterproductive, costly, immoral and unjust practice of criminalizing people’s efforts to survive in public spaces when no other options are available to them.

Denver Homeless Out Loud (DHOL), as a member of Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP), is leading the campaign for the Right to Rest Act in Colorado together with partner organizations across the state. In a coordinated campaign, California, Oregon, and Colorado are running the Right to Rest Act in their state legislatures this session.

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Together we are doing this!! Colorado Right to Rest Act was partially heard in the State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee yesterday and has been laid over until April 27 at 1:30pm. Due to our bill being heard second and time running out we only got 5 of our testifiers and 2 from the opposition. We will start back right where we left off with testimony and a full hearing on the 27th!

From Colorado to Oregon to California our Right to Rest Acts are being heard in State legislation!

At least 100 of us rallied together, spoke out, ate fine food, drank coffee, and hung out in the basement of the Capitol from 8am until 12:30 when our bill was heard! Denver, surrounding suburbs, Boulder, Fort Collins, Grand Junction, and all the way from California — we all stood together because we all know the time is now to end the criminalization of existing in pubic space!

​Mark your calenders for April 27 1:30pm to come back and show together that Coloradan’s must have the right to rest! (stay tuned for details on location)

]]>http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/04/16/right-to-rest-hearing-started-to-be-continued-april-27/feed/0denverhomelessoutloudThis Wednesday April 15! Colorado Right to Rest Act to be Heard in Committee!http://denverhomelessoutloud.org/2015/04/12/this-wednesday-april-15-colorado-right-to-rest-act-to-be-heard-in-committee/
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Oregon and California Right to Rest Acts have been heard in legislative committee!!…no votes taken yet…

Colorado Right to Rest Act goes to committee hearing this Wednesday!

Rally: 8am Lincoln Park (Colfax and Lincoln)

Hearing: when regular morning session is done (sometime in the morning) State Capitol Building room 271 (200 E Colfax Ave)

We need to contact the State, Veteran, and Military Affairs Committee members who will be voting on HB 15-1264 and tell them to vote for the Right to Rest!

All the numbers and emails for the committee members can be found here or below. Please take 5 min to call and tell them why we all need the right to rest!

Almost 500 people living without housing in 10 Colorado cities completed a survey in which they shared their experience with police and private security guards, local laws against resting in public space, and access to other basic needs such as bathrooms, shelter, and housing. This survey was conducted by Denver Homeless Out Loud and partner organizations across Colorado and the findings have been analyzed and turned into a report by Dr Tony Robinson and Allison Sickels of the Political Science Department of the University of Colorado Denver.